How does the future look for the Miami Marlins?
The Miami Marlins got swept by the Philadelphia Phillies last night. After the excitement that the players shared after making the playoffs, this was a very underwhelming ending to the season. The obvious question now is how does the future look? Can The Fish take steps forward? Is this the beginning of a string of winning seasons? Will the team fall into a rebuild?
The Miami Marlins have a potentially bright future on the horizon.
What would you say if told that Sandy Alcantara would have an ERA above 4.00 and would be out for the end of the season? That Eury Perez would debut and live up to expectations but miss the nd of the season? That Jazz Chisholm Jr. would miss most of the season? Would you think that the Miami Marlins would end up making the playoffs?
The Fish made the playoffs for the first time since 2020 and for the first time in a full season since 2003. That's an accomplishment and it happened with Sandy pitching like a mid-rotation starter at best! What happens in 2024 with a healthy Eury Perez getting more innings and a hopefully healthier Sandy Alcantara?! What happens if Jazz is healthier? Jake Burger will be around for a full season this time too.
Kim Ng has proven that she can improve the team with some good trades and Trade Deadline overhauls. I have faith in her finding a way to improve the team even more. Manager Skip Schumaker said this about the team's future:
"I think the culture changed. I believe that there's a new standard in that clubhouse now. Now it's up to them to protect that standard, honestly. I think those guys are now understanding what winning looks like and should look like. It was a really fun year. I grew a lot as a person, as a coach. Met a lot of good people, new people in baseball, and just really fell in love with those guys.”
Skip Schumaker summed up the season really well. The Miami Marlins improved considerably from 2022 to 2023, made the playoffs, got experience and took steps to build a winning culture. 2024 looks very promising for us indeed!